Many people fail to reconsider their analysis before disregarding hiking as an extreme sport. Completing a given route is a combination of preparation and luck. Why luck? There are thousands of possible scenarios to put off even the most finicky of hikers. Foul weather, faulty equipment, wild animals, and natural catastrophes can turn any adventure into a flirt with death. There are so many spectacular trails globally, but they become a real horror show when coupled with several miscalculations and bad luck.
There are many reasons why specific courses might be considered dangerous such as poor infrastructure, predatory wildlife, natural occurrences (Floods, volcanic eruption, mudslides), and fatalities. And whereas scores of hikers continuously walk away unscathed from these tracks, a series of mistakes can be fatal.
With temperatures prone to drop to -45 degrees Fahrenheit and wind speeds breaching 100mph, no wonder the Mt. Washington Observatory in New Hampshire refers to itself as the “Home to the World’s Worst Weather.” This track is exposed and occasionally covered in a blanket of snow, and hikers are often advised against not carrying extra layers on this trail. For context, Mt. Washington holds the record for the highest wind speed (231 mph in 1934) recorded within tropical cyclones. What makes this track so dangerous is how deceptive the weather can be; you could start with a clear blue sky before it turns tangy. In addition, Mt. Washington lies at the confluence of several storm tracks requiring hikers to be capable of self-evacuation in case conditions stray out of control. As a result, there have been over 150 fatalities due to hypothermia and avalanches.
People often curse at just how rigid the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu is but those who have bettered the Huayna Picchu Trail would strongly disagree. Often regarded as “the Hike of Death,” the hoary granite track climbs 1000ft in a mile or less. Not to mention the slippery stones, crumbling rocks, and exposed corners, the Huayna Picchu is a death trap. Unfortunately, many travelers attempt the track quite unprepared, which often shows along the way. Completing this track is down to a couple of factors, such as appropriate footwear, mental strength, and endurance should help you get through. However, the cloud cover and mist that make visibility almost impossible coupled with steep slopes means hikers are only a shear away from death.
Despite the pure intentions of the local authorities, this track still ranks among dangerous pathways. Reconstruction to allay fears after the way was called the most dangerous pathway in the World following deaths in 1999 and 2000. Sited in Spain’s Malaga Mountains, Caminito del Rey is a narrow Cliffside track once used by power station workers pinned along the steep walls of El Chorro Gorge. The pathway was partially shut down for repairs and reopened in 2015 to hikers. And despite the vigorous facelift and improved safety standards, the track feels like a long plummet down.
Imagine staring thousands of feet down a cliff while standing on a wooden plank path built 700 years ago; that is the anxiety shared by hikers on the Mt. Huashan plank path. Mt. Huashan summiting at 7,070ft, is located near Huavin in Shaanxi province of China. The plank path comprises steel rod ladders with footholds carved out of the cliff with the walkways made out of thin wooden planks. There are so many unverified rumors of hundreds falling to their death, usually on the subway journey to the pathway. But, verified or not, this pathway isn’t for the cowardly.
Once a popular route for migrants headed for the United States, the 55-mile missing road stretch has become a backpacking favorite. The unmarked path passing through swamps, forests, mountains, and rivers is prone to flash floods. Given the steep and swampy terrain, the only way to navigate it is by foot, making it very dangerous. The wilderness on this track is surreal, and hikers must be on the lookout for snakes, crocodiles, poisonous bugs and plants, and even mosquitoes carrying malaria and dengue fever. There are even reports of guerrilla wars in some sects of the route.
The red rock labyrinth aptly named the Maze is littered with dead ends and gullies that make it somewhat impossible to navigate. The difficulty of this course has only made it even more prominent after reports that the remote section of Canyons National Park receives about 2000 annual visitors. The most dangerous facet of this track is the relatively high temperatures and risk to flash floods and rockfalls.
The Kokoda Track has become synonymous with death since the intense war in 1942 between the Japanese and Australians. In 2009, 13 people lost their lives while headed to the trailhead, and later that year, four more hikers died on the track. The track was discovered only last decade when audacious hikers discovered a 60-mile schlep between Port Moresby and the village of Kokoda. However, the Australian and Papua New Guinea governments have been efforts to modernize the track since the ill-fated season of 2009.
A colossal death trap until 1985, the main track in South Africa had claimed about 55 lives when the local authorities called time on what seemed to be a death lure. They made renovations to the pathway and revised safety standards for hikers while on the track. However, despite all efforts by the authorities, perennial deaths continue on the most exposed and beautiful alpine terrain in the World. The doozy Drakensburg Traverse should take you over a week to complete. The official route is 140-miles along the Lesotho-South Africa border, and you will summit six peaks of the height of 10,000ft.
The route was an inspiration of travel memoirs of Sir Ernest Shackleton. He and his crew got stuck in icy waters, and after months of sitting it out, their boat cracked, and they were forced to reach for the Island of South George, where they hoped to get help. They, however, docked the wrong side of the Island, causing them to walk a further 32 miles before arriving at the whaling station. That is how the route became a hiking trail. The trail is an exertion over steep points, arctic passes, dangerous crevasses, and life-size glaciers but always a good experience when you go hiking with Penguins.
The deceptive 11-mile trail is deceptively beautiful, with great views of the Pacific Ocean and enchanting flora for hikers to revel in but has a dark side. It harbors a deadly cocktail of rockslides, flash floods, and severe drop-offs. Parts of the trail are eroded and poorly marked for the hikers; in 2016, a man fell to his death, while in 2014, a 19-year old girl was helplessly swept away by the stream at Hanakoa. The deadliest section of this pathway is the Hanakapi’ai beach stream that has claimed over 100 swimmers.
The Pacaya is a lively volcano that has raised this track’s thrill, with adrenaline buffs hoping to claim its scalp. It is known to have erupted about 23 times before the resumption of volcanic activity in July of 2018. The thrill of catching a glimpse of volcanic activity and striking views atop this volcano has hikers clamoring over whose turn it is to have a go. Unfortunately, given the rise in fatalities on the peak, it has been closed off to tourists.
The Cascade Saddle, just like all the trucks before it in the list, makes for quite a deceptively beautiful and tempting for many hikers to resist. The alpine meadows and beech forests cater for aesthetics for the pompous hikers during the 11-mile charge to the end. However, it is worth stating that in the past few years, 12 lives have been claimed on this course, particularly the point where hikers attempt to descend on wet slippery rocks. The most recent in 2013 was a German trekker who died in quite a similar manner, raising the alarm on this dangerous track.
